Prescription Sunglasses and Glasses
This section will guide you through what you need to know about ordering and choosing prescription sunglasses and glasses.
About Prescription Sunglasses
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Glasses Frames
Eyewear is now as much a fashion statement as a necessity, although there are general rules like if you've got a narrow or petite face going for a frame with a smaller width is better it's also down to you as an individual. A particular Sunglasses frame maybe one person's first choice and the next person's last choice. Most people tend to have an idea of the shape and size that they prefer, so a good starting point is to enter your prescription into our website and start looking through the available frames. We would recommend entering your glasses prescription because our site automatically filters out any frames not suitable for your prescription, doing the job of the professional eyecare staff in your local opticians.
Prescription Lenses
There are several different lens materials available. All having different properties, with the two main ones being lens thickness and weight. We've tried to make ordering as simple as possible; having knowledge from experts we have developed our website to allow for prescription entry. Once the site knows your prescription it automatically filters out any lens materials not suitable for your prescription.
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Pupil Distance (PD) Measurement
This measurement is the distance between your eyes taken in millimetres (mm). It can be written as a single value (average between 52-75mm), taken from the centre of your right pupil to the centre of your left pupil, or in two values (average between 25-38mm) taken from the centre of your pupil's to the centre of the bridge on your nose, resulting in two values one for your right eye and one for your left eye. Often these two figures are added together to gain your full PD.
More often than not the copy of your prescription will not show the PD (simple reason being opticians want you to purchase your eyewear from them). For those of you that don't know your PD we have developed a PD ruler. This is simple to use, coming with full instructions, and is posted out the day we receive your order. When purchasing your prescription glasses you will need to select a value for your PD, the default is 'sent easy ruler' (our ruler) or you may click on the pop-down menu and select the correct value should you know it. If you don't know your PD do not worry, simply leave as the default 'send easy ruler' and we'll do the rest. You will receive the ruler in 1-2 days automatically after your order has been placed.
Prescription Lens Guide
| Lens Material | Lens Thickness and Weight | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1.5 | Standard lens | |
| 1.59 (Polycarbonate) | 20% thinner than 1.5 | Due to the high strength property of polycarbonate it is used for sports eyewear (We automatically use this in any sports prescription glasses) |
| 1.6 | 20% thinner than 1.5 | |
| 1.67 | 40% thinner than 1.5 | |
| 1.74 | 50% thinner than 1.5 |
Prescription Sunglasses and Glasses Solutions
Single Vision Prescription In The Whole Lens (Direct Glaze)
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Sports Oakley Flak Jacket XLJ Wrap-around Sport Sunglasses
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Ophthalmic Oakley Transistor Glasses (Everyday Glasses)
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Fashion Ray Ban Aviator Sunglasses
This method is always used for prescription glasses (everyday glasses) and commonly used for both prescription sunglasses and prescription sports glasses.
Your prescription lenses are manufactured to the same shape as your chosen optical frame (glasses or sunglasses) and fitted directly in to the frame. All our prescription lenses are ordered by dispensing opticians (the professionals in the optical industry) to ensure you receive perfect vision whilst keeping your glasses in the same shape as originally intended by the manufacturers.
Advantages
- One piece glasses
- No insert to separately clean
- wide field of view
- Cosmetically pleasing
Single Vision Prescription Insert (Optical Insert)
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Sports Rudy Project Magster Wrap-around Sport Sunglasses with optical insert
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Sports Adidas Evil Eye Wrap-around Sport Sunglasses with optical insert
This method is typically used by sports eyewear companies, leading the way are both Adidas and Rudy Project Sunglasses. The sunglasses are developed to allow for an optical insert (which is fitted with your full spectacle prescription) to be neatly clipped into the back of the frame.
The inserts are fitted with clear prescription lenses, which enables the wearer to interchange the tinted lenses in front of the insert for different colours allowing for varying weather conditions. The inserts can be seen through a light tint making the eyewear not as cosmetically pleasing as direct glaze but as a sports performance pair of glasses they excel. Even though you can make the insert out with lighter tints going for a dark tint with a full mirror for sunshine will completely hide the insert making them more cosmetically pleasing.
Advantages
- Ideal for contact lens wearers (insert can be removed if wearing contacts)
- ost effective way of getting prescription sunglasses / glasses for different light conditions
Bifocals and Varifocals
IMPORTANT: All our orders are processed as single vision distance, unless you notify us differently by telephone or email.
We believe it is not practical or safe to make bifocals or varifocals over the Internet and as such we don't offer them online. If you are able to visit our store (Xscape, Colorado Way, Castleford, WF10 4TA) we can accurately take the extra measurements required for these types of lenses. You will not get accurate vision otherwise and although this may not be as convenient we always make the customer's vision and safety our priority.
Sunglasses Tints
All manufacturers use slightly different terminology to describe their tints. When you break them down you are left with Lens Colour, Lens Darkness (a measure of how much light can pass through the tint), and lens finishes.
Basic Tint Colours
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Grey / Black
Neutral lens colour for true colour definition. Used for bright conditions
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Brown / Bronze
Increases contrast and depth perception. Used for medium – bright conditions
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Green
Increases contrast for field and grass sports. Used for medium – bright conditions
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Orange Mirror
Typically has a dark grey base tint with an Orange mirror (medium – bright conditions)
Not to be confused with an orange lens
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Blue Mirror
Neutral lens colour for true colour definition. Used for bright conditions
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Red
Increases contrast and depth perception. A good lens for days when it's mixed weather
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Orange
Increases contrast and depth perception. Used for low light conditions
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Yellow
Increases contrast and depth perception. Used for low light conditions
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Clear
No tint. Used for night time and general eye protection
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Graduated
Gradient from dark to a lighter tint on the base of the lens. Popular colours include Brown and Grey
Lens Coatings
- AR
- Anti Reflection coating (also known as Multi Anti-reflection MAR). This is a clear coating that's applied onto the front and back surface of optical lenses to increase the light transition of the lens. Typically used for everyday prescription glasses as it improves the cosmetic appearance by making the lenses appear reflection free. Also aids nighttime driving by reducing glare around headlights and when applied to transition lenses it increases the lens reaction time from clear to dark.
- Mirror coating
- A cosmetic metallic layer is applied to the front surface of the lenses. This reflective layer also helps with glare in bright sunshine. Many brands come up with different names for mirror coatings, Oakley refer to theirs as Iridium and Rudy project refer to their's as Lazer.
- Photochromic / Reaction lenses
- These lenses react to sunlight, changing from either clear to dark or from a light tint to a dark tint. The name transition is often used when asking for photo reactive lenses but it's important to clarify that 'transitions' is an actual brand in its own right. There are many other brands out there offering slower reaction times. Extreme eyewear is proud to supply 'transition' prescription lenses for all our customers so you know you're getting the latest technology.
Links to Manufacturer's own lens descriptions
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Understanding Your Prescription
Prescriptions can be written down in a variety of ways, so to make it easier for you and to reduce the risk of errors we have developed our website to accept all prescription formats. This means all you have to do is enter your prescription into our site exactly as you see it on your copy.
NOTE: You can scroll up and down the prescription entry pop-down menus. It is of vital importance that you select the correct symbol (- minus or + plus) for the Sph and Cyl parts of your prescription. If you need help please call 01977 551223 before ordering.
The layout for of a prescription will include:
| Sphere |
Can be one of three values:
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|---|---|
| Cyl |
Can be one of three values:
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| Axis | A value between 1 and 180 |
| Add | Always a (+) value. |
If you have an 'add' section on your prescription it is used for reading glasses, varifocals and bifocals, all of which we do not do over the internet. If you need these types of corrections please call into our store in Xscape, Castleford, or call 01977 551223.
We recommend getting an eye test by a registered optician every two years (*for medical reasons it maybe necessary to go more regularly, ask advice from your optometrist). Your vision is our number one concern. As such, we will not accept any prescriptions that are older than 2 years.
It is not ethical for us to produce prescription glasses over the Internet for complex prescriptions (over + or – 7) or children less than 18 years of age, and so we will only dispense such eyewear from our shop.
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